Former President Donald Trump has distanced himself from Project 2025, a conservative wish list organized by the Heritage Foundation, stating that the plan is not his and contains “terrible ideas.” However, a line-by-line review by CBS News identified 270 proposals in Project 2025’s published blueprint for the next Republican president that align with Trump’s past policies and current campaign promises. By comparing policies enacted during Trump’s first term, his campaign platform, rally speeches, and interviews, CBS News extracted over 700 specific policy proposals from the 922-page policy guide of Project 2025.
The Project 2025 agenda resonates with Trump’s recorded words and his Administration’s deeds, including proposals to shut down the Department of Education and eliminate references to diversity, equity, and inclusion from federal agencies’ projects. At least 80 proposals would bring back executive orders and other policies from Trump’s administration, 170 proposals match his campaign ideas and statements, and 21 proposals align with both Trump’s past actions and his campaign promises. Furthermore, 28 out of the 38 primary authors of Project 2025 had worked in Trump’s administration, including the two leaders of the project.
Some of the ideas that mirror Trump’s actions and agenda include removing gender identity mentions and transgender protections from federal agencies, downsizing the Department of Education and returning functions to states, eliminating subsidies for electric vehicles, and rolling back emissions limitations on gas-powered vehicles. Project 2025 also advocates for ending diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, as well as teaching critical race theory, aligning with Trump’s pledges to remove such programs in his administration. The blueprint also reflects Trump’s positions on issues like border security, immigration, student visas, climate change agreements, nuclear weapons, military spending, and work requirements for public assistance recipients.
Despite the similarities, there are areas where Project 2025 diverges from Trump’s policies or promises. The document includes proposals to further restrict abortion, criminalize pornography, ban TikTok, and subjects not addressed by Trump, such as a federal abortion ban, criminalizing pornography, and banning TikTok. The Heritage Foundation had previously created a similar policy outline under the same title in 2015 before Trump’s first term, with Trump instituting 64% of their policy recommendations a couple of years into his presidency.
Overall, the alignment between Project 2025 and Trump’s past actions and campaign promises suggests a significant overlap in conservative policy goals between the former President and influential conservative organizations like the Heritage Foundation. Despite Trump’s disavowal of Project 2025, the policy proposals in the blueprint are reflective of his administration’s policies and his campaign message, indicating a deep influence of conservative principles in shaping the agenda for the next Republican president. The review by CBS News highlights the interconnectedness between Trump’s administration and conservative think tanks, shedding light on the continuity of conservative policy priorities across different Republican administrations.
